Tech
iPhone 18e Could Get Two Key Upgrades While Keeping 60Hz Display
Apple’s upcoming iPhone 18e model will retain a 60Hz display but could gain an upgraded front-facing camera, according to the leaker known as “Digital Chat Station.”
In a new post on Weibo, the leaker said that the device will feature a 6.12-inch OLED display using low-temperature polycrystalline silicon (LTPS) technology, the A20 chip, and a single 48-megapixel rear camera. They were less definitive about the front-facing camera, saying it could be upgraded to 24 megapixels.
The specifications suggest that the iPhone 18e will offer no major display or rear camera hardware upgrades over the previous two generations. Both the iPhone 16e and iPhone 17e feature approximately 6.1-inch OLED displays with a 60Hz refresh rate and a single 48-megapixel rear camera. The post does not detail the rear camera’s sensor or lens, so smaller hardware changes remain possible.
The A20 chip would represent a more significant upgrade. Like the A20 Pro chip in the iPhone 18 Pro, the A20 is expected to use a 2nm manufacturing process, bringing notable performance and power efficiency improvements over the iPhone 17e’s 3nm A19 chip. It would also bring the device into line with the upcoming standard iPhone 18, which is expected to use the same chip.
The front-facing camera claim is less clear. Digital Chat Station specified 24 megapixels, although it is unclear whether this refers to a new camera or is a mistaken reference to the 18-megapixel Center Stage camera introduced with the iPhone 17 lineup. A 24-megapixel camera was widely rumored before those devices launched. Either resolution would represent an upgrade over the 12-megapixel front camera used by the iPhone 16e and iPhone 17e.
Digital Chat Station previously claimed that the iPhone 18e would retain a 60Hz LTPS display. An earlier report from Korea suggested that an LTPO display capable of supporting 120Hz ProMotion could reach the entry-level iPhone with the “iPhone 19e” in 2028.
The iPhone 18e is expected to launch in spring 2027, alongside the standard iPhone 18 and iPhone Air 2.
Related Roundup: iPhone 17e
Tech
Wall Street banks, Blackstone line up $63 billion to finance Broadcom AI chips for Anthropic
Broadcom is providing “residual value support” to lenders, who are providing first lien loans or senior debt, effectively providing a significant guarantee in the financing structure.
Sign up here.
The latest deal highlights the growing role of banks and alternative asset managers in financing the infrastructure needed to support rising demand for AI computing capacity.
Anthropic filed for a potentially record-breaking IPO on Monday, even as disclosures of steep losses and security concerns threatened to test investor appetite for the AI heavyweight.
The size of the first lien loans or senior debt is about $43.5 billion, according to two sources familiar with the matter, or 69% of total financing.
Blackstone will provide the committed portion of the second-lien financing – which ranks below senior debt – while Bank of America, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley are arranging the first-lien financing, the statement said.
Chipmakers have provided guarantees in the past to absorb potential declines in the value of the assets, such as advanced chips and data infrastructure.
The release did not disclose the breakdown of the loans, while Broadcom did not respond to a request for comment.
Rising AI demand is driving massive investment in computing infrastructure as technology companies race to secure capacity for increasingly complex workloads.
Bank of America, Citi and Morgan Stanley are arranging the first-lien financing.
Deliveries are expected to begin in 2027 as part of a previously announced strategic compute capacity agreement involving Broadcom, the companies said.
Apollo and Blackstone had agreed to finance a $35 billion expansion of Anthropic’s AI computing capacity under a prior agreement with Broadcom. Broadcom’s backstop in that deal was up to $29 billion, it said in a filing.
While Moody’s described Broadcom as one of the strongest large technology companies, it warned that the risk would increase if multiple transactions were undertaken over a short period to meet the sizable funding needs of frontier AI labs.
Reporting by Aditya Soni and Prakhar Srivastava in Bengaluru and Saeed Azhar in New York; Editing by Pooja Desai and Lincoln Feast.
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab
Prakhar Srivastava covers U.S. finance, including banks, card companies, payment firms, insurers, exchanges and asset managers. He also writes on IPOs and venture capital. Previously, he worked on Reuters’ Global Pictures Desk and holds a degree in Political Science from the University of Delhi.
Saeed Azhar is a Reuters financial journalist and part of the U.S. banking team, which covers Wall Street’s biggest banks. He focuses on Goldman Sachs and Bank of America, and also writes about regional banks. Before moving to New York in July 2022, he led the finance team in the Middle East from Dubai, and also worked in Singapore, covering Southeast Asia finance.
Tech
Microsoft offers buyouts to around 60,000 employees to contain costs
Staffers across the Windows maker would be eligible for the offers, including those working in AI experiences, Copilot, finance, human resources, Xbox and Windows + Devices, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters, requesting anonymity as the matter was private. Units such as marketing, commercial business and security will be excluded, the source added.
Sign up here.
“This offer gives eligible employees who may be considering a future outside the company a new choice to make that transition now with support. It also gives participating organizations another way to adapt their workforce to changing needs,” Chief People Officer Amy Coleman said in a staff memo.
Like other tech giants, Microsoft is spending hundreds of billions of dollars on AI data centers and chips, drawing scrutiny from investors over whether the returns will justify the staggering cost. The company, slated to report first-quarter results after markets close on Wednesday, has forecast $175 billion in capital expenditures for the 2026 calendar year.
Microsoft had 223,000 full-time employees globally as of June 30, 2026, according to its annual filing.
Shares of Microsoft, which had risen about 10% this year, were up about 1% on Monday. The development was first reported by Business Insider.
The company earlier this year offered voluntary buyouts to about 7% of its US workforce, or about 9,000 employees.
In July, Microsoft announced it would cut 4,800 jobs, or about 2.1% of its global workforce, overhauling its Xbox gaming business and divesting up to five studios as it looks to boost returns after years of heavy investment in the division.
“This offer will be available to eligible employees in participating teams in Canada, India, the United Kingdom and the United States at level 70 and below,” Microsoft said on Monday.
The company said it was a time-limited, voluntary program and built on insights gained from a previous voluntary retirement program. The eligible employees will receive details within the next few hours, it added.
Reporting by Jaspreet Singh and Aditya Soni, additional reporting by Deborah Sophia in Bengaluru; Editing by Jonathan Ananda and Devika Syamnath
Tech
What Vucic’s defeat means for Serbia’s foreign policy
Serbia has reached a watershed moment following 14 years of authoritarian rule by Aleksandar Vucic and his Serbian Progressive Party (SNS).
Sunday’s election delivered a historic victory for the opposition Student List, ending the political dominance that Vucic and the SNS had exercised/enforced for 14 years.
As Belgrade prepares for a turbulent transition and the upcoming presidential elections in December, international observers and regional neighbours have been asking whether Vucic’s departure will prompt a shift in Serbia’s foreign policy.
However, while international analysts often anticipate a quick foreign policy pivot toward the West whenever an authoritarian regime falls, experts warn that internal consolidation will take immediate priority and any transformation will be gradual.
Domestic cleanup before regional reset
SNS’s defeat has brought a mixture of cautious optimism and uncertainty across the Western Balkans. Serbia’s relations with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro and Kosovo have often been frayed by Vucic’s nationalistic rhetoric.
Aleksandar Popov, director of the Centre for Regionalism in Novi Sad in Serbia, told Al Jazeera that a rapid reset in regional relations was unlikely.
“These questions will not be on the agenda immediately,” he said, referring to relations with Serbia’s neighbours.
The new authorities will first have to tackle domestic problems, he said, including dealing with a system that has “captured all democratic institutions”, as well as problems in the judiciary, prosecution service, police and media sector.
“Tidying up at home” will take priority before “solving problems with the neighbours”, Popov said, despite noting that the outgoing regime had done everything possible to undermine regional relations.
While relations with Croatia are “not frozen” neither are they “the way they should … be between neighbours”, being marked by frequent sharp words.
Amid recent mass protests in Serbia, Vucic accused Zagreb of organising a “colour revolution”.
In addition, “relations with Montenegro are disrupted and issues with Bosnia and Herzegovina remain unresolved,” he said.
Stabilising the region
Croatia is the thorniest case, Popov suggested, noting that relations deteriorated as the SNS clashed with Croatia’s ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), which stems from a similar nationalist-populist stable.
“Zagreb would fire a poisoned arrow at Serbia and that gave Belgrade an argument to retaliate,” he said, describing a system that “functioned on the production of internal and external enemies”.
Meanwhile, behind the public hostility, lay a quiet convergence on Bosnia and Herzegovina, he argued, with Belgrade backing Republika Srpska leader Milorad Dodik and Zagreb favouring a third entity.
He expressed hope that a new government in Serbia led by experts and civic leaders, would work towards stabilising the region and revive Serbia’s hopes of joining the European Union.
“The previous government sabotaged EU integration and the EU will not accept a country without good neighbourly relations. The new government’s task will be to repair those damaged ties,” Popov said.
Russia and Ukraine
Beyond the immediate neighbourhood, global powers are closely watching Belgrade.
Under Vucic, Serbia maintained a delicate balancing act, refusing to impose sanctions on Russia despite heavy pressure from the EU, while simultaneously allowing ammunition to flow indirectly to Ukraine.
Of all elements of Serbian public policy, foreign policy will transform the least under the forthcoming governmental changes, Vuk Vuksanovic, a lecturer in foreign policy at King’s College London, predicted to Al Jazeera.
“Many international and domestic structures that shape Serbian foreign policy will remain in place,” he said, adding that Moscow never fully trusted Vucic, but viewed him instead as “the devil they knew”.
Russian influence will take a blow, with the end of uncritical glorification of Moscow in Vucic-controlled tabloids and media and intelligence cooperation to be downgraded, he said, but the new government is unlikely to adopt a hawkish stance overnight.
Serbian interests can continue to be served by ties with Russia, he asserted. “The country still needs preferential gas prices, the Kosovo dispute remains unresolved and parts of the public remain disillusioned with the West.”
“The new Serbian government will not see value in joining EU sanctions or adopting a hawkish stance toward Moscow,” Vuksanovic continued.
“Regarding Ukraine, Serbia will maintain its policy of not recognising the annexation of Crimea and Donbas. However, there is a question mark over ammunition deliveries, as the opposition viewed Vucic’s weapons sales to Kyiv as a cynical ploy to buy Western tolerance for his domestic rule.”
Ties with Israel
Another critical dimension of Serbia’s external relations is its close relationship with Israel. Under Vucic, Serbia established a strong partnership with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, marked by arms trade and technology exchanges.
Bosko Jaksic, a foreign policy analyst, told Al Jazeera that while ties will not be severed, recent controversial agreements will face scrutiny.
“The new government has no reason to abandon cooperation with Israel, but it will certainly re-examine newly concluded contracts – primarily those concerning Serbian ammunition exports to Israel and Israeli surveillance equipment exports to Serbia,” Jaksic said.
The analyst also noted that Netanyahu’s government has lost another “authoritarian, nationalist ally” in Europe after Viktor Orban’s removal in Hungary earlier this year. However, Serbia’s future stance will also depend on political developments in Jerusalem.
“How Israel positions itself toward the new authorities in Belgrade depends largely on the outcome of Israel’s own elections,” Jaksic added.
Multiple chairs
Looking at the broader geopolitical alignment, he emphasised that Serbia’s foreign policy will inevitably undergo a review.
He suggested that “the policy of ‘sitting on multiple chairs,’ which brought Serbia more harm than good, will certainly be re-evaluated”, and that it is realistic to expect Belgrade to strengthen ties with the EU.
But as Serbia enters a new political era, the international community should expect a period of intense internal reform rather than sudden geopolitical realignments, all of the analysts agree.
Tech
Microsoft offers buyouts to 60,000 workers as it pours money into AI
Microsoft is offering voluntary buyouts to about 60,000 employees, or roughly one-quarter of its global workforce, as the technology giant invests more in artificial intelligence.
So-called voluntary exit offers are available to eligible employees in Canada, India, the United Kingdom and the U.S., Microsoft said in announcing the buyout program on Monday. Employees must be at the vice president level or below to qualify for a buyout.
“This offer gives eligible employees who may be considering a future outside the company a new choice to make that transition now with support,” Amy Coleman, Microsoft’s chief people officer, said in a memo to employees.
Microsoft expects to spend $175 billion on AI infrastructure, including through investments in data centers, in 2026 alone, Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood said in a July earnings call with Wall Street analysts.
The exit program is the second voluntary buyout offer Microsoft has offered workers this year. In May, Microsoft planned to offer buyouts to about 8,750 people, or 7% of its U.S. workforce, the Associated Press reported, citing two people familiar with the plan who were not authorized to speak about it publicly.
In July, the company said it was cutting 4,800 jobs, about 2% of its global workforce, including many workers in its Xbox video game business.
Microsoft had 223,000 employees globally at the end of June, down from 228,000 at the end of 2025, according to regulatory filings. Around 27% of Microsoft’s workforce is eligible for the new buyout offer, according to Agence France-Presse.
The offer is available to mid-level workers for what Microsoft said was a limited period of time. It’s designed to let them leave the company with financial padding and career-planning resources, while allowing the company to save on labor costs.
Eligible employees will be made aware of the offer by email on Monday, Coleman said.
Tech
Neoclouds Face ‘Guppy-Level Death,’ Elon Musk Warns. Why CoreWeave and Nebius Will Survive.
You are now leaving Barron’s website
By clicking on the “Proceed” button below, you will be redirected to a third-party website owned and operated by Hong Kong Tiimoot Information Technology Co., Limited. (“HKT”), which is located in Hong Kong. That website operates independently from Barron’s and Barron’s does not control the website. The privacy practices of HKT are subject to its Privacy Statement, so please read it closely. We are not responsible for HKT’s privacy or other data-related practices.
-
HealthNews2 weeks agoDementia risk more than quadruples among adults with common disorder
-
Business1 week ago‘Black Monday’ fears intensify as prediction markets shrug off 2026 crash
-
Business2 weeks agoMcDonald’s chicken and beverage growth faces rivals
-
Entertainment2 weeks agoCollin Gosselin discusses alleged abuse by mom Kate Gosselin
-
Entertainment2 weeks agoNetflix, Derek Cianfrance Adapting Gary Paulsen’s Book
-
Business2 weeks agoGetty Images to File for Bankruptcy, Go Private In Restructuring Deal
-
Business2 weeks ago
Why BlackRock is suddenly more bearish on stocks
-
Business2 weeks agoUnitedHealth Group (UNH) earnings Q3 2026
